of the Sierra Club Canada Foundation
In late March, Dr. Isabelle-Anne Bisson and Nathalie Gendron presented in a live webinar series titled All Hands on Deck with the Sierra Club Canada Foundation - a monthly webinar meant to address the biodiversity and climate crisis which humanity faces. Dr. Bisson and Ms. Gendron’s presentation, titled Protecting Avian Biodiversity: A Guide for Municipalities, discussed the plight of birds as well as the Migratory Birds Convention Act, an important Canadian law that protects migratory birds during their breeding season. The time of the webinar was à propos because late March is marked by the return of the very first early migratory birds (such as red-winged blackbirds).
The webinar began by declaring the unceded Indigenous lands and thanking the Indigenous representatives. It was one of the first presentations with live translation in both French and English.
Dr. Bisson began the presentation in English with an overview of the situation for birds at the global and national levels, specifically discussing the sobering data presented by the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Living Planet Reports in 2017 and 2020 as well as other seminal papers on diminishing avian populations. These reports have raised public awareness on the importance of protecting avian species. Ms. Gendron continued in French for the rest of the webinar, presenting success stories on bird protection in the cities of Vancouver and Toronto. She also covered the historical background of the first studies done by TerraHumana Solutions in 2018 funded by Bird Protection Quebec, which resulted in the current collaborative project between TerraHumana Solutions and SCCF - developing a guidebook for municipalities on how to best protect and conserve their avian populations.
Attendees (from Quebec and Ontario) seemed ready to act - most participants were citizens involved in grassroots movements. Questions included, “Are there studies on the impact of municipalities or citizens' activities on bird nesting habitats?”, “Do cat predation and building collisions have the same effect on bird populations in municipalities?”, and “Are TerraHumana Solutions working with the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP.org)?” During the Q&A, the attendees expressed a need for this guidebook ASAP.
“We want to thank and acknowledge SCCF, who made this webinar successful” saidDr. Isabelle Bisson.
Want to learn more about this webinar: Protecting Avian Biodiversity: A Guide for Municipalities?
Check it out in the link below.
About TerraHumana Solutions
TerraHumana Solutions is a consulting firm, which specializes in helping community and business leaders to find sustainable solutions to environmental and social issues. Our approach is simple - we listen. Bringing 20 years of international experience in natural resource sciences, strategy, project conception, and management, we can find the right strategic approach for you. At TerraHumana Solutions, we contribute to informed decision-making on community and business engagement projects, and conservation projects with Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.
For more information, please contact:
Isabelle-Anne Bisson, Ph.D.
President
TerraHumana Solutions
+1 514 654-7835
ibisson@terrahumanasolutions.com